6 month photo session courtesy of Cherokee Spivey Photography

Many babies don't have any problem with teething. My poor baby is not one of them.

For Alexis, teething means my normally happy baby is transformed into a drooling, snotty, cranky child. From swollen gums to loss of appetite and even a teething cold (that I'm pretty sure she's passed on to me), if it's a symptom of teething she's got it.

This is our second round with teething, and this go 'round is so much worse than the first. My normally-independent baby is now clingy and cries when I put her down. And forget about sleeping through the night. In fact, getting her to go to sleep in the first place has been a 10-20 minute ordeal filled with lots of tears and crying - on both our parts (anyone who says they can just let their baby cry is lying).

We've tried every type of teether imaginable. She'll chew on a raspberry for a little while, and today (Monday) we had success with a Dr. Brown's giraffe teether, but the gel-filled ones you put in the refrigerator are big fat fail. We've tried wetting a wash cloth and putting it in the freezer; she just throws it to the side. Getting Orajel in her mouth is a battle, but one I got smart about tonight -- since Alexis likes having her teeth brushed, I put the Orajel on her toothbrush and success! Last night we broke down and gave her Tylenol; I couldn't tell that it worked.

I've read everything I can find on teething remedies - WebMD, Mayo Clinic, Baby Center, you name it. None of their suggestions have worked.

A coworker recommended freezing half a banana and letting her chomp on it. Another recommended an old wife's tale of putting a fresh egg in a man's dress sock and hanging it over the baby's bedroom door. She said she didn't know how it worked but it did. I'm not a big believe in things like that, but if we get desperate, maybe.

Things we haven't tried -- soaking a cloth in chamomile tea (since the other cloth idea didn't work, I'm not even considering this) or rubbing whiskey on her gums.

Calling all mommies! What teething remedies worked for your little ones? After three nights of not nearly enough sleep, this mommy needs to find some relief!